Bundle tie



Feb. 26, 1957 R. w. FRENCH BUNDLE TIE Filed Dec. 1, 195sI'IIIIIIIIIIIIII/IIIIIIIIIII/IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII w" INVENTOR.A), jZM/Z 26? Mig I I r a.IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII/IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII Affomeys BUNDLETIE Ralph W. French, Ludlow, Mass., assignor to Ludlow Manufacturing &Sales Co., Boston, Mass., 2 corporation of Massachusetts ApplicationDecember 1, 1953, Serial No. 395,340

1 Claim. (Cl. 24-18) This invention relates to ties for bundles andpackages and is concerned more particularly with a novel bundle tie,which holds the bundle tightly, is not like to be broken, even thoughthe bundle is roughly handled, and is inexpensive.

The new bundle tie comprises a length of relatively soft compressibletwine wrapped about the bundle and having its end sections extendingside by side in opposite directions. The end sections of the twine areheld against relative movement by a metallic clamp, which compresses thesections against each other, so that they are held in contact over anarea of substantial width running lengthwise of the sections. The clampholds the sections without abrupt bends and, at its ends, the internalsurfaces of the clamp flare outwardly, so that the twine is not incontact with a sharp edge on the metal and not liable to injury byabrasion in the handling of the bundle. This tie can be applied rapidlyby machine and a suitable machine for the purpose is that disclosed andclaimed in the copending application of French, Shields, and Pond,Serial No. 355,036, filed May 14, 1953.

For a better understanding of the invention, reference may be made tothe accompanying drawing, in which Fig. l is a view in side elevation ofa portion of the new bundle tie including the clamp;

Fig. 2'is a longitudinal sectional view through the clamp on the line 22of Fig. 3;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view on the line 33 of Fig. l; and

Fig. 4 is a view in perspective of a bundle having a pair of the newties applied thereto at right angles to each other.

The tie of the invention comprises a length of twine 10, which iswrapped about the bundle and has its end sections 11, 11 extending sideby side in opposite directions. The twine is relatively compressible andit is preferably made up of a plurality of singles yarns plied togetherwith a low twist, the yarns being made of a relatively soft fiber, suchas jute, as distinguished from a hard fiber like sisal or istle.

The end sections 11 of the twine are secured together and held againstrelative movement by a clamp 12, which is made of sheet metal andencloses the end sections through more than 360. The clamp compressesthe end sections of the twine into contact over an area 13, which is ofsubstantial width and runs lengthwise of the end sections from one endof the clamp to the other. The clamp is so formed as to define astraight passage of substantially uniform cross-section for the majorportion of its length and, at the ends of the clip, its inner surfaces14 are curved outwardly on a relatively long radius, so that thesurfaces flare away from the axis of the passage.

In the application of the clamp by machine, as, for example, that shownin the co-pending application, Serial No. 355,036, referred to above,the end sections of the twine in the tie are held side by side within adie and a sheet metal blank is forced edgewise into the die and formedinto a clamp tightly enclosing and compressing the end sections of thetwine. The blank is preferably States Patent Patented Feb. 26, 1957 madeof sheet steel of about 24 ga. and, as the blank is forced into the die,the marginal portion 15 of the blank along its leading edge retains itsinitial fiat condition. Inwardly from the fiat marginal portion, theblank is bent within the die to form an intermediate curved portion andthe flat and curved portions lie opposed in the completed clamp andcompress the two end sections of the twine into tight contact. The clamphas a marginal portion along the trailing edge of the blank, which wasnot curved by the action of the die and forms a fiat portion 16 lyinginward from the outer edge 17 of the clamp. The edge 17 bears againstthe outer surface of the clamp adjacent the inner edge 15a of the flatmarginal portion 15.

The inner surfaces of the clamp in contact with the end sections of thetwine define a passage within which the end sections are compressed andforced into tight contact over an area of substantial width runninglongitudinally of the twine. The inter-fiber friction between thecontacting surfaces of the twine holds the end sections of the twineagainst relative movement and the clamp thus, in efiect, provides ajoint between the end sections. The strength of the joint is derivedmainly from the friction, and the length of the clamp is, accordingly,chosen, in view of the purpose for which the bundle tie is to be used,so that the joint will be of adequate strength. Since the passagethrough the clamp is straight and of substantially uniform cross-sectionbetween the inner ends of the flaring surfaces 14 at opposite ends ofthe clamp, the compression of the twine within the clamp is not likelyto do injury to any of the fibers of the twine. The inner surfaces ofthe clamp are smooth and there can thus be no damage to the fibers ofthe twine such as would result, if the surfaces were scored orroughened, as in prior clamps, The portions of the twine within theclamp are not in contact with sharp edges or surfaces abruptly changingdirection, which might injure the twine by abrasion during the handlingof the bundle, and the flaring surfaces 14 at the ends of the clamplikewise protect the fibers against abrasion damage. With the fibers inthe portions of the twine within the clamp thus protected, the fibersare not likely to be progressively broken during bundle handling withultimate breaking of the twine and release of the bundle.

I claim:

A tie for a bundle, which comprises a length of relatively softcompressible twine adapted to be wrapped about the bundle and havingsections at its ends extending in opposite directions and lying side byside, and a clamp made of a smooth strip of sheet metal wrapped aboutthe end sections of the twine and extending through more than 360", thestrip having a flat portion adjacent its inner end and a curved portionjoined to and facing the fiat portion, said portions of the strip whollyenclosing the end sections of the twine and compressing the end sections toward the longitudinal axis of the space defined by the portionsto distort and force the end sections together with flat surfacesthereof in close contact, the strip having a flat portion adjacent itsouter end joined to the curved portion and overlying the inner flatportion, with the free end edge of the outer flat portion lying close tothe junction between the inner fiat portion and the curved portion.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS676,415 Brooks June 18, 1901 1,783,967 Kearney Dec. 9, 1930 2,598,334Ahlburg May 27, 1952 FOREIGN PATENTS 634,726 Germany Sept. 2, 1936377,934 Italy Ian. 16, 1940

